54th: Don't Look Back
by AnnetheV
Summary: Annabeth Chase, from District 11, is reaped into the 54th Hunger Games. She has to face 23 other tributes, including a vicious Career pack. Who can you trust when everyone wants to kill you? AU,slight Percabeth, winner of the Veritas Awards Round 6
1. Chapter 1

**I know, everyone HATES authors notes blah, blah, blah. But I feel like I should warn you. This is my first crossover fix, so it might not be all that great. And another thing, reviews are greatly appreciated, because everyone who writes on this lovely site doesn't get paid for writing their beautiful stories. Alright, I'm done with the note now. Onward with the story.**

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_A silver knife flashes, and scarlet blood pours out of the gaping wound. A shrill scream pierces the still night._

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I sit up, my body covered in sweat. My gray eyes scan the small room before me, seeking out the nonexistent knife from my dream. My dream, which could only be triggered by one thing. The Reaping. My body shivers involuntarily as the word passes through my brain. No. I can't be afraid. I have to be strong, if not for myself, for my brothers, Bobby and Matthew.

Speaking of which. . .I look over at my half brothers, studying their calm faces. When they're asleep, they look almost harmless. But sometimes I'm not sure if I hate them or not. Ever since my dad married that witch. . . Anger and hatred course through my veins. I know that my hatred towards my stepmother is unfair, seeing as she's been nothing but kind to me, but I could never forgive my dad for marrying her.

"Annabeth?" My father's voice suddenly croaks out of the gloom, startling me.

"Dad?" I whisper, matching his tone. I see him standing next to the kettle, probably brewing some thin tea.

"What are you doing up so early? I thought you'd be sleeping in today."

"I can't," I whisper back, unwilling to say too much to him. "Why are you awake? This is your only day off."

My father shrugs half-heartedly. I guess I can fathom what he's feeling. Worry. Hatred. Fear. At least, that's what I think he's feeling. I can never tell anymore. I haven't been close with my dad ever since he remarried.

I crawl out of bed and sit at the table, across from my dad. He smiles timidly and pours me a cup of hot water. We sit in silence for an immeasurable amount of time, sort of enjoying one another's company. Eventually, my stepmom wakes up. She joins us at the table, her eyes dull, barely acknowledging me. It gets awkward after about a minute, so I leave. I get up, and pull on a thin jacket and oversized boots on top of my pajamas.

"Annabeth?" My stepmom's voice breaks through the prolonged silence. I look at her, unsure what to expect from the woman who replaced my mother. "Be careful." She finally says.

"I. . .I will." What else can I say?

With those last words, I crunch across the gravel around our house towards the road. There are few people up now. A couple of homeless people stare at me as I pass by, and there are a couple of citizens milling about in the side streets. All of them are avoiding town square.

My large boots trip me up one or two times, but I eventually make it to my destination. A small house not unlike the one I call home. The sun has just barely revealed its entire being in the sky when I knock on the door, my sun tanned fingers looking paler than usual in the bright sunlight. The door swings open, and I involuntarily step back. A face beams at me, the worry lines etched into their pale skin marring the grin slightly.

"Hey Brenda," I say, trying to keep my voice light. "I just thought I'd drop by."

Brenda frowns at me. "Annabeth, I've known long enough to know why you're here. I know what you're worried about. I'm scared too."

"Brenda, I've been entered twenty times. The odds are _not _in my favor this year." I try to laugh, but it sounds like I'm being strangled.

Brenda's face hardens. "And I've been entered twenty-four times." She gestures for me to come inside, and I do.

We sit at the table inside her house and talk quietly for a while. But we avoid talking about today. Thinking about the Reaping will probably make it worse. After we talk, Brenda and I just sit in silence. On a regular day, we'd be hard at work in the orchards, laughing at jokes and teasing the mockingjays.

We stare at each other for a while, sharing our pain, when Brenda finally says: "So, I'll see you at the Reaping in an hour?"

I grimace. "Sure."

I begin the short walk back to my dismal house. I trudge past many houses, the atmosphere around me getting worse and worse with each step. Only an hour until two kids are chosen to die on live television. Only an hour until I know whether I'll live to be seventeen or not.

The hour passes by too quickly. I get dressed, and do my hair. My family and I sit in silence for a minute. Then, we're being herded towards town square. I'm pushed with the other fifteen year olds, all of us standing straight with tight lips and bloodless faces. About half of the children of District Elven are here today. The other half anxiously waits at home, wondering who will get chosen this year. Every other year, my half of the District files in and waits to see who among us will be chosen to die. Every other year, I stand in anticipation, horrible thoughts filling my mind. I find Brenda and grasp her hand, fear starting to spread rapidly throughout my body. My other friends Posy and Mary join us. We clutch each other's hands while the mayor reads off a speech about the history of Panem. Finally, the moment of anticipation arrives, and a bubbly looking Capitol man goes over to the Reaping balls.

"Ladies first!" He squeals, his Capitol accent practically raping the words.

His thin hand slides into the glass ball containing our names. Posy takes in a few deep breaths, and Brenda starts hyperventilating. I squeeze her hand reassuringly, but her eyes are filled with fear.

Then, the man has the slip in his hand and he's calling out the name. I'm hoping with all my heart that it's not Brenda, or Posy, or-

"Annabeth Chase."

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**So? What do you think? Good, bad, lame? Review please and tell me what you think!**


	2. Chapter 2

**THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS: mild violence.**

**Note: not much dialogue

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My father sits silently beside me, holding my hand. My brothers sit on his lap, and my stepmom's arms encircle me. My family says their tearful farewell, and then the Peacekeepers yank us apart. Brenda, Posy, and Mary run into the room. They babble on and on about how I can stay alive if I do this, if I do that. But deep down, we know that there's no hope for me. Coming from District eleven won't help me now. In the Games, they can twist everything you know, make edible plants poisonous to the core, harmless bunnies have carnivorous appetites, and spiders-no, I don't even want to THINK about that.

My friends leave, and I have no more visitors. I sit on the worn couch and run my fingers over the soft fabric. Panic starts to rise, but I remind myself that anything I do from here on out could be caught on camera. I push strand of my curly blonde hair back and sit up straighter. I'm as good as dead, that much is clear. But, since I have no other choice, I might as well go out in style. A determined smile creeps into my features.

By the time I enter the train station, my mood is no longer hopeless, but determined, a crazy kind of hope burning in my chest. The other tribute from my district is a thin boy on the edge of starvation. His name is Michael Hayes. He has matching brown eyes and hair. I would hate to kill him, he's in such terrible shape. I doubt he's ever had a full meal in his life. Then again, hardly anyone in my district has. I probably wouldn't either, except for. . .My real mother.

She had been a rich merchant-class citizen, striking in appearance and sharp in wit-or so I've heard. Her name was Pallas Athena. When she'd married my father, it had been one of the happiest moments in his life. Then. . .she left. She was just there one day and gone the next. No one really could've guessed. She didn't show any signs, I guess she was either smart enough not to or her departure was spontaneous. I was three then. I waited for her all day. She told me she'd be back. My father and I waited months for her to come back. And when she never came back, my dad gave up and remarried.

Our district escort knocks on my door and informs me that we're going to watch the recaps of the Reapings. I open my door and walk down the hall, marveling at the decor. There's a few seats and a small couch waiting for us in the "TV room". Michael sit down on a chair, as does the district escort. I'm forced to share the couch with my mentors. I guess I should be paying attention, but only a few people catch my attention. There's a vicious looking duo from District one, both of them have a hard glint in their eyes and triumph in their voices as they volunteer, shoving others out of the way. The boy from District three has a gargantuan pair of glasses resting atop his small nose. The pair from district twelve are miniature, thin, and look starved, like the people of my district. There's the black-haired boy from four, who volunteers and is up the steps before anyone else can even start to speak.

The rest train ride to the Capitol is quiet. Michael develops a nervous breakdown halfway through the Reapings, so he's sent to his room before dinner. My mentors (I have three) and the district escort who pulled my name out of the Reaping ball make small talk with me. Then, after a few days, we're at the Capitol.

And, as much as I hate to say it, it's unbelievable. The place where kids are sent to die is drop-dead gorgeous. It's like the old North America, the one we study in ancient history class. The architecture in the buildings, from the columns to the skyscrapers, model the architecture of the past, with high-tech stuff added to it.

We arrive at the Training Centre, where we'll be staying up until the Games. I go to my room and sit on my bed. I can't do it. Just thinking of all those people that I have to face makes me queasy. All I'm asking for is a nice, quick death, so that I'm not humiliated on live television. But judging from the looks of the Careers, a quick death isn't going to be an option. They'll probably have me screaming a pleading for death before they're through with me.

I shiver at that thought. But then, an idea occurs to me. The battle at the Cornucopia could help me on my quest for a quick death. It's absolutely perfect! I'll die honorably, fighting with what will seem to be my best effort. Then, I'll let another tribute overpower me and I won't have to worry about killing anyone or having a long drawn out death.

It's not a perfect plan, but for now, it's the only one I've got. I hate not having many options.

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"EWWW!"

"GROSS!"

"I think I'm going to puke!"

These are the things my prep team greets me with when they walking my room. The absurdly dressed trio has been removing my body of every single "disgusting" feature my body has to offer. They've just finished waxing me, leaving nothing but the blonde hair on my scalp. The rest of my body tingles, and it's a light shade of pink.

"Why are all of you so hairy?" One member of the prep team squeals as she remove the last of my unwanted eyebrow hair.

I grit my teeth and decide not to answer. She'll pay for that later. After saying a few more things that I take care to tune out, my prep team leaves and my stylist enters. I'm wearing nothing by my birthday suit, and I'm wishing that I could wear ANYTHING at all when my stylist comes into the room. He's at least thirty five, and has dyed everything-including his eyes!-a deep blue. He sticks out a hand, which is webbed, like a frog's.

I recoil at first, and then I have to force myself to grasp the indigo hand. I let go quickly and stick my had at my side again.

"So, you're Annabelle Chase, right?" My stylist asks, his voice an odd sounding croak.

"It's AnnaBETH." I growl.

He nods. "My name is Fredrick Waden. You may call me Fredrick." I just noticed how his voice horribly mauls the "r's".

"Uh, thanks but no thanks Mr. Waden." That's such a stupid last name. Waden.

He sighs, and begins his work on me. He dresses me, applies my make up, and does my hair. When he whirls me around to face the mirror, I almost choke on tears.

I'm wearing a pair of overalls with large clunky boots, and a green shirt underneath. My hair has been teased so that it looks like I just got out of bed, and I'm wearing green lipstick, green eyeshadow, and a green pair of apple shaped earrings. I decide that I hate the color green.

When I walk out into the hall, I see that Michael is wearing an identical outfit, minus the green makeup. I sigh, and follow Mr. Waden out to the chariot. He frowns at us for a moment, then disembarks.

Michael and I stand in silence. It gets uncomfortable for me, so I walk over to our horses. They're light brown, and apparently well trained. I let one of them lick my hand. It makes me smile. My eyes look at the other tributes, and I'm disappointed to se that almost all of them have abetter costume than me. Well, scratch that. The District Twelve tributes are naked and covered in coal dust again.

After the anthem plays, the chariots begin to roll out. There is a good amount of applause for the first few chariots, but it dies down after District Five. By the time Michael and I roll out, there's only a few claps here and there. District Twelve receives almost complete silence.

When President Snow speaks, I tune him out and examine my competitors. Hardly any of them are paying attention to the speech, though I do catch few of them looking back at me. The girl from District Six blushes when I catch her staring at me, and the boy from District Four smirks knowingly. I glare at him, but he just rolls his green eyes at me and looks away. Did I mention that I hate the color green?

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**I'll have chapter three up after Thanksgiving! Reviews are appreciated! 3**


	3. Chapter 3

**THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS: Mild violence, some cuss words**

**Note: Romance if you squint**

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I roll the knife over in my hand, getting used to the feel of the weapon. I'm in the Training Centre, where I'll spend the next few days preparing for the unavoidable slaughter to ability to handle a knife, I decide, might come in handy in case I beat the odds and actually survive the bloodbath at the Cornucopia. I'm not the only one at the knife throwing station, but right now, I'm trying to ignore the other occupant. It's that damn District Four boy, and he's annoying the hel-never-mind.

I throw the knife at one of the dummies, and it barely misses the center. The District Four boy laughs.

"Nice shot," He snickers.

I glare at him and speak to the annoyance (that's what I've nicknamed him) for the first time. "Like you could do any better."

The boy flips his stupid black hair back, smirks at me one last time, and throws the knife. It nails the dummy right in the center, where it's heart should be. "You were saying?"

"Oh, shut up, kelp-for-brains." I say. I start to walk to the camouflage station instead.

"It's Percy!" The boy shouts back.

I ignore him. I devote my undivided attention to pairing my body with different dyes to match backgrounds that the trainer lays out. I do a pretty good job until Michael comes over.

"Lunchtime." He says. His voice is hoarse, but I'm not sure why I care, I mean, He's my opponent, right?

He helps me up and starts to walk away. I'm following him reluctantly to the cafeteria when he suddenly whirls around. I jump back. His face turns bright red, and he mumbles: "Sorry".

"So. . .Are you and that District Four kid. . .like, you know. . ." He doesn't finish his sentence, but I know what he's getting at.

"What? No!" I think I might puke just from thinking about it.

Michael smiles now. "Good. I mean, good for you. Because. . .It's not god to be hanging around the enemy."

I stare at him for a second, debating whether to give him an honest comment or a sarcastic remark. Then I decide silence is better, because getting close to anyone in these Games would only get me a knife in the back at one point or another. At lunch, I sit alone at a table and ignore everyone around me. Making friends isn't any way to survive.

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There are only two more days until we show our skills to the Game-makers , and I'm still not sure what to show them. I could do camouflage, but at best, that will get me a three. I could show them my sword-fighting, but I'm guessing some Careers will be doing that. I guess that leaves only my knife skills. But in order to perfect that, I'll have to go to the knife-throwing station. . .And right now, there are two Careers there.

Rather than put myself in potential danger, I decide to go over to the archery station for a while. I do pretty good at it, and I can't help but compare my skills to Per-the District Four boy's. I saw him try the station a couple days ago, but he was awful at it. Arrows were flying everywhere, I doubt that it was a ruse, because as much as I hate him, that kid is as sincere as he is dense.

I shoot an arrow through one of the targets and put the weapons away, now that the knife-throwing station is open. I perfect my skills, and, after a while, Michael joins me. I have trouble concentrating now that he's here. It's not that I don't like him, but I feel uncomfortable whenever he's around, because I feel like I should be nicer to him or something. I mean, he's from my district. . .

"Look," Michael turns toward me and I instinctively back away. "I know that you don't know me very well, but. . ."

"Don't talk to me Michael," I sigh. "Being friends would only be bad for the both of us. In the Games, who knows if I'll have to kill you or not?"

Michael stares at me for a second, and something flashes in his eyes. Hurt? "Okay Anna-"

I leave before he can finish my name. Like I said, I plan on winning this thing alone.

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I throw around knives for the Gamemakers. They pretend to pay attention to me. That night, I end up getting a 5. Michael gets a 3, that girl from District Six gets a 2, and fish-face gets a 7. I hate people from District Four. The following night, we get interviewed. I wait anxiously throughout the other interviews, trying to pay attention but failing epically. The girl from District One, Desiree, definitely goes for seductive in her interview. She nails it, and the maven to the next person. The boy from District Four-I find out that his name is Perseus-is probably going for charming or something. His interview just about makes me sick. In what seems to be no time at all, I go up on stage for my interview.

Caesar Flickerman, the host of the interviews, has dyed his entire body a nauseating shade of yellow. It looks disgusting. He warms up with a few easy questions, asking about my life back home. Then he asks me:

"How do you plan on surviving the Games tomorrow?"

I hesitate. If I say that I don't plan on surviving, that might hurt me later on in the games if I live through the battle at the Cornucopia. If I lie and I end up dying, I might hurt my family, back in District Eleven, which seems so far away. So, I just say:

"If I tell you my plan, I'll have to change it again so the other tributes won't do anything!" It sounds stupid as soon as it comes out of my mouth, but hey, at least it sounds better than: "Oh, I don't plan on surviving. I want to die! Yay!"

Caesar laughs at my corny joke, and before I know it, my interview time is up. I go to bed that night but don't fall asleep right away. When I do slip into sweet unconsciousness, I'm plagued by nightmares. I wake up at five in the morning, according to my clock. My stomach goes numb when I see the clock, and I don't know what to do anymore. In a few short hours, I'll be in the arena.

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**If you're wonder why this came out before Thanksgiving it's because I decided that I wanted to work on Chapter Four some more over the four day weekend I'm gonna have. :) You can thank me for having this up a day early. Go ahead.**

**(AND) Dun Dun DUN! Ooohhhhh, it's a cliffy! What's going to happen next? Nothing, if you don't review! ;) ANd yes, I know it's super short. They'll probably get longer once the action starts coming along. As in, the next next chapter will probably be longer.**


	4. Chapter 4

**THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS: violence, cuss words**

**Note: I really can't censor this. It doesn't get worse than anything in Collin's books, but I feel that I should give you guys a heads up. Who knows, somebody might be squeamish.**

I slip on the clothes assigned to me and start feeling nervous beyond belief. I'm wearing a brown shirt and a black hooded jacket. The colors will camouflage me pretty well in a forest, but it all depends on the arena. I'm wearing thick gray pants, kind of like sweats, and small brown shorts underneath the pants (of course I'm wearing underwear too!). The shoes I'm wearing are too small to be boots, but to large to be sneakers. So, they're in the middle, I guess. My clothing shouldn't really matter to me-I've never cared about it before-but I'm just distracting myself from being nervous about the Games. My stylist, Mr. Waden, is no help at all, because he keeps chattering about how my clothes have absolutely no fashion sense in them.

Then it's time to get the tracker injected into me by some random doctor. Now the Capitol will be aware of my every move. I step into the plastic cylinder, and deciding that this may be my last chance to laugh, as I'm descending, I stick out my tongue at Mr. Waden. He looks absolutely flabbergasted, and I manage to crack a smile. But the smile quickly disappears as I catch sight of the arena. There's no reason to be smiling now. I could probably die within the next five minutes.

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For one short minute I survey the arena and my opponents, feeling more terrified the more I see. The Cornucopia rests in a wide meadow, with two large mountains to my left and an enormous hedge maze to my right. There's a lake directly behind the golden horn, but I can't see beyond that. Hopefully there's no more beyond that, since I'm not the greatest swimmer in the world.

The other tributes have a wide variety of expressions on their faces, from terrified to bored, from excited to hopeful. I remind myself of the plan I made in the room where I said my good byes. The plan to die at the Cornucopia. The gong sounds, and I take off for that gleaming golden sanctuary, the last beautiful thing I'll ever see. I grab an armful of things and stuff it all in a large backpack, trying to cram as much junk as I can in the bag so that I look like I'm trying to survive.

The fighting starts. A kid falls to the ground at my feet before I can even react. The Careers have already reached the Cornucopia, and people are dying all around me. I feel a shiver run down my back, so I heft up my bag, sling it around my right shoulder, and turn about-face. What I see makes my heart plummet down to the soles of my feet. Crap. It's that District Four boy.

Percy's eyes meet mine, and he yanks a knife out of the pile of stuff. His mouth forms a grim line, and he throws the knife. Straight at me.

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The knife misses and thuds into something behind me. Percy smirks briefly and then disappears in the throng. I whirl around and see the boy from District Seven; he has Percy's knife in his chest and a shocked expression on his face. He has an arrow in his hand, presumably to stab ME with. His eyes cloud over, he falls backward, and then he's trampled by a Career.

I make a small squeaking sound in the back of my throat before I decide that it'd be better if I left the Cornucopia. Fast. I yank fish-face's knife out of the District Seven boy, stab the kid from District Three in the thigh when he tries to follow me, and then head for the lake.

At the last second, turn and head for the hedge maze at the last second. I can't swim. Or at least, I never tried to. So I go into the maze, deciding that now wouldn't be a good time to find out how well I can swim. As soon as I'm in the maze I try to put as my distance between myself and the Careers. Once the bloodbath is over, they'll most likely try to trap more people here in the maze.

I turn random corners and eventually come to a dead end somewhere in the middle of the maze. The sun is high up in the sky by the time I stop. The green walls all around me are about ten feet tall, and if there's anyone near me, I can't see or hear them. I carefully scout the area before I decide that it's safe enough. I sit down in a small corner at the edge of my dead end. I lift my heavy backpack off of my shoulder and open it, examining the contents.

There's kelp-for-brain's knife, which is covered in blood, an empty plastic bottle, a sling shot, a sleeping bag, a couple of darts, a tiny flint like rock, and a small bag of trail mix. It's actually a lot considering that I almost died getting it.

But I'm not sure if it's enough. I've only got one weapon and a small amount of food. I won't live too long unless I find water, and even that might not be safe to drink. Plus, I'm not sure that I'm safe here in the hedge maze. The Careers could sneak up on me if I fall asleep. Sighing regretfully, I put everything but my knife and trail mix in the backpack. Then, I change my mind and put a few of the darts in my left jacket pocket. I stick the trail mix in my right, pull the backpack on, and grip the knife in my right hand.

I start navigating the maze again, this time more carefully. I think I want to survive these Games long enough to show Bobby and Matthew just how tough their older sister is.

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I've been walking for what seems to be hours, eating trail mix and trying to find water, or animals to eat. I find nothing, and my throat gets drier and drier with each step I take. I take a right, a left, right, middle, middle, right, left, left until I loose track of where I'd been. I run my finger along the bushes that trap me, that keep me from water. Then my luck turns for the better. I reach an opening in the endless hedges. I dart through it, afraid that it will close if I don't. Then I see where I'm at now, and I almost wish that I was back in the hedge maze. I'm at the edge of the freaking lake and I CAN'T swim.

Crap.

I scan the lake for signs of life, or namely, people. At the other side of the lake, I see the golden Cornucopia glinting in the sunlight. Bodies litter the ground all around it, so the fighting must have just stopped. Sure enough, the cannon starts booming. I count eleven. That means almost half of the people who entered this arena toady are dead. The boy Percy killed, is definitely one of them. Is the kid from District Three among the dead? Am I directly responsible for his death?

I shiver and edge closer towards the lake. The tip of my pinky finger-the only finger that I can afford to lose-brushes the surface of the clear water. Ripples spread out from where my skin meets the water. I'm calmed for a second, and I sit down. My throat is still burning with thirst, but I'm afraid to drink the water. It could be poisoned. I lean my head over the lake, still debating whether or not to drink it. All of a sudden, someone clears their throat and speaks behind me:

"It's perfectly safe to drink."

I scream and whirl around, pointing my knife at the tribute behind me. Then I recognize their face and breathe out a sigh of utter relief. There's no mistaking those brown eyes and hair. It's Michael Hayes. Right when my muscles relax, I remember that the last words I said to him were: "Don't talk to me Michael, being friends would only be bad for the both of us. In the Games, who knows if I'll have to kill you or not?"

I stare at my District counterpart warily, and my muscles tense up again. If he's been angry at me for that, now is the perfect oppurtunity to get back at me. Michael sees my expression and laughs.

"Annabeth, I'm not going to kill you. I couldn't even if I'd have wanted to." He says. He drop the small axe he'd been holding and raises his arms in defense, prison-style.

He can't kill me? Why. . . Ooohh. . .Right. If you kill another tribute from your district, you get shunned back home. Duh. I knew that.

I decide that trusting him won't kill me for now, so I drop my knife next to my backpack and sit down.

"How do you know that the water's safe?" I ask.

Michael's grin fades and he points toward to middle of the lake, where a small oval shaped island rests. I don't see anything, but I can guess what Michael saw there.

"I came out of the maze awhile ago. I was like you, hesitant to drink the water at first. But then I saw the District Four boy drinking from the lake in that island over there, so I guessed that he knew it was safe somehow."

I narrow my eyes at the island. That's sharkboy's domain. "How do you know that he's now gonna swim over here and kill us in our sleep?"

Michael scowls when I ask my question, but he answers me. "I'm not sure if I'm right, but I think that bast-boy-has a soft spot for you."

"What?" I splutter. "He does not! W-why would you think that?"

Michael's frown deepens when I speak. "I only said it was a hunch. No need to act so touchy."

"But-"

"Look, you take care of yourself, alright?" Michael says. He turns away from me, not looking back, and re-enters the hedge maze.

I stare after him for a while, waiting to see if he'll come back. When he doesn't, I go back to staring at the oval shaped island, where seaweed-brain supposedly is. The sun starts to set. It's beautiful, just the way the Gamemakers want it. The colors blend and mix in ways that make me long for home, where I'd be working in the orchards around this time. I twirl my knife around in my hands, debating what to do next. I've started repacking my stuff and eating trail mix when I hear it. The wretched scream that shatters the peaceful silence of the twilight. I leap to my feet, grab my knife and my darts, and run into the maze, searching the scream's owner. Searching for the only person whose voice that could've been.

Michael.

**Thans so much for reading this story! You have NO IDEA how much this means to me! :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS: violence, cuss words**

**Note: Sparks fly**

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Note 2: I WAS going to kill Michael. I had this whole chapter pre-written, and he was dying and it was all dramatic and everything-but then, at the last minute, I decided that I didn't really want to kill him yet. . .you're welcome.

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I sprint through the maze blindly, tearing through the bushes and turning sharp corners heedless of any danger, one thought on my mind. I hear him scream again, and this time it's nearby. I rip through the hedge separating me from my District counterpart and get tons small cuts and scrapes from the plants, but I could really care less at this point. There's the girl tribute from seven standing over him, and she turns to face me when she hears my noisy entrance.

"Payback for Aspen!" She shrieks when she sees me, and that's the last thing she says before my hands grip the knife and plunge it deep into her chest. She squeals and falls backward.

I run over to Michael, who is laying on the ground with blood all over his face. He's not moving. I think he's dead until I realize that he's moaning in pain. I crouch over him and whisper soothing words, relieved that he's alive. A cannon goes off. I scream Michael's name before I realize that the girl from District Seven has gone silent. I turn around and see her still body, unmoving, with blood dampening her shirt around the dagger.

Before the hovercraft takes her body away, I yank the knife that killed her and her district counterpart out of her chest, murmur an apology, and go back to Michael. He's sitting up now, and I can see the all of the cuts in his face.

"How did this happen?" I demand, opening my plastic water bottle and pouring small amounts of the precious liquid on the wound.

"It was that girl," Michael groans. "She snuck up on me, and took out a pocket-knife. Then she. . .did this to my face."

I smile and push my hair back, leaning closer to examine the cuts. "Well, at least you're alive. I thought I'd lost you for a second there."

MIchael groans again. "I thought I was a gonna as soon as she started cutting up my face." He pauses. "Do you think we should go back near the lake? If we do, we'll have a source of water."

Michael's getting up now, and I blush when he says that. "I don't remember how to get back to the lake."

He shrugs. "We'll probably find our way back. It shouldn't take too long."

I agree, and I get up, wiping the blood off of my knife on the hedges. We start making our way through the endless maze when I remember something.

"Michael," I begin, praying that my theory is right. "I left my bag back at the place near the lake. And when I heard you scream, I was eating trail mix. Some of it probably spilled out of my pocket when I was running, and-"

"-It could lead us right back!" Michael finishes, and a grin breaks out across his injured features.

We search the area for nuts, raisins, oats, or yogurt chips. I'm looking underneath the hedges when Michael shouts that he's found something. I go over to examine it and, sure enough, there's a couple of peanuts and a raisin. We're following the trail of food back to the lake when I hear the anthem. Michael and I look up to see the Capitol's seal, and I know what's coming next. The faces of the dead tributes, one who I personally killed.

The first face that appears is the boy from District 3. That's the kid I stabbed in the thigh at the Cornucopia. A wave off guilt washes over me. The next person who appears is the girl from 3, followed by both tributes from 5. I guess seaweed-brain made it. The girl from 6, the one who blushed when I caught her looking at me when we were on the chariots. The kids from 7, the boy who Percy stabbed and the one who I killed. The audience will have watched me kill her on television again. Both from 8. The girl from 9 appears. I hold my breath, waiting for the last tribute to appear. It's the boy from 12.

Michael looks at me, his face ashen. "I killed the boy from twelve, didn't I? At the horn, we were fighting and I cut his chest so that I could escape, and he's dead now."

I give him a bitter laugh. "At least you didn't intend to kill him. I attacked that girl from seven, and I MEANT to kill her. I wanted her dead when I stabbed that knife into her chest."

Michael doesn't answer me, he just keeps following the path of magical trail mix (note the sarcasm), which makes me feel a whole lot better. We don't talk, which makes my mood get worse and worse with each step, and when we finally reach the lake, I sit down near my stuff, take out my sleeping bag, and go to sleep.

* * *

When I wake up in the next morning, Michael is gone. I sigh in frustration. Stupid boy. He's going to get himself killed. I pack up my stuff again, and then I finish up what's left of my trail mix. I sit at the edge of the lake for a while, debating what to do next. No brilliant ideas come to me, so I refill my water bottle with lake-water, arrange my weapons on the inside of my jacket, and fiddle around with my slingshot. I'm at a loss at what to do next. I guess, since my trail mix just ran out, I should get food or something, but I haven't seen any animals around here.

I decide not to move base, just in case Michael comes back. I leave my backpack nearby the edge of the lake and wade into the water, washing off my cuts from the hedges last night. I keep my clothes on. Most of the cuts were pretty shallow, and have already dried, so i spend most of my time in the water just splashing around aimlessly.

It's there, while I'm splashing around in the water, that I decide that now would be a good time to start learning how to swim. I start off in shallow water, and then I go deeper and deeper as I get more confident. By the time the sun is setting, I'm exhausted.

I wade back over to my backpack, and decide not to move camp. I'll wait one more day for Michael to show up, and if he doesn't that's his problem. I walk into the hedge maze and look around, but I don't stray too far from camp. I see not hide nor hair of that brown haired boy, so I go back to my lakeside hideout, pul out my sleeping bag, and fall asleep.

* * *

**Sorry if that chapter was a little slow. And short. **

**Now have a question for YOU GUYS: Who should win the 54th HUnger Games? (That's these Games, by the way.)**


	6. Chapter 6

**THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS: violence, minor cussing**

**Note: Sugilite is a type of gemstone.**

I listen carefully to the anthem as the seal of Panem flashes across the night sky. No faces appear, so I assume that Michael made it through the day. Same with Per-fishface. I had woken up from my nap about an hour ago, and I've been traveling through the seemingly endless hedge maze ever since. I've been heading towards the Cornucopia, which is east, or at least where the Gamemakers' sun would rise. I want to go toward the horn, not for supplies, but for a place to hide. Any weapons were probably taken by the Careers, along with food and supplies. The place would probably seem useless to them, so it would most likely be unguarded.

I'm about to turn a corner when I hear a voice say:

"Do you think anyone'd be stupid enough to come here, do you, Sugilite?"

A harsh voice responds: "Shut up, Twinkle! Do you want someone to hear us?"

"No," The first speaker mumbles.

I peer warily around the corner and find myself face to face with Seaweedbrain. He covers my mouth before I can react and shakes his head, his stupid green eyes wide. I look behind him and see the other Careers, both from 1, 2, and the girl from 4. They're huddled around a small fire, and one of them calls over to Percy.

"Having fun keeping watch, water-boy?"

Percy shoves my head back around the corner and answers. "It's not too exciting, Sugilite. Wanna trade places?"

_What the heck is he doing? _My mind screams, panicking. I almost turn around and head back toward the lakeside when Sugilite replies:

"You wish!"

I breath a sigh of relief and then quickly suck it back in, wondering if the Careers heard. Percy speaks again, talking over my gasp.

"I'm going to see if there's anybody around here, okay? I thought I heard something."

A girl's voice, not Twinkle's, speaks this time. "Do you want me to go with you? I don't mind."

"Nah, I'll be fine. Like Twinkle said, I don't think anyone's _stupid _enough to come here." He barely emphasizes the word stupid, just enough so that I would notice. Oh, how I loathe that Seaweedbrain.

Percy comes out from around the corner, grabs my elbow, and starts dragging me away from the other Career's hearing distance. I decide that it wouldn't be wise to protest just now, so I go along with him. But I swear, if he tries to pull a knife on me, I'll have him gutted before he can say 'Uncle'. Once the smoke from the Career's fire has all but faded in the distance, Percy turns around and talks to me.

"Why in the world were you there? If I hadn't been on watch, you could've been killed!" This takes me by surprise.

"Why do you care? We're from different districts! I don't even know you!" I all but exclaim.

Percy bites his lip. ". . .I thought you were supposed to be smarter than the others, or is that not true?"

My cheeks turn red. "Don't change the subject!"

"Look, wise-girl, we don't have time for this! The others could suspect something if I don't come back soon!" The boy tells me.

"Alright, I agree with you, the other Careers are nasty, dangerous creatures. But that doesn't make me want to trust you." I say, waiting for an explanation.

"I don't have time to explain this to you right now! But you have to trust me, because, after all, you _do_ owe me."

Oh, how I hate this kid. I owe him, just because he decided to kill the boy from seven instead of me? I hate him so much.

"Fine." I hiss, glaring at Percy. "So what do you suggest we do, Seaweedbrain?"

"I-" He pauses. "Seaweedbrain? Is that the best you've got?"

"Forget that! Just continue with your plan!" I snap.

He glares at me for a second. "Like I was saying, go to the Cornucopia two days from now. I'll explain more once I know that I can trust you."

"You don't _trust me_?" Now he's just pushing my buttons. I'm really gonna kill him if he Careers don't get him first.

Seaweedbrain rolls his eyes. "Like you said before, we don't even know each other. I have no reason to trust you."

"Okay. . .So, what now?" I say uncertainly, not sure whether I should come up with another with remark or take off running.

"Just. . .Keep yourself safe until day 4. Or can't you handle that?"

"Oh shut up," I say, but I'm secretly glad that I don't have an ally who keeps disappearing on me. Then, a horrible thought occurs to me. "How do I get to the stupid horn? Aren't your pack of Careers gaurding the exit to the maze?"

Percy rolls his eyes again. "Go through the lake! The other Careers won't follow you, because they'll be in the hedge maze, with me." I can here the 'duh' he barely mutters at the end of that.

"I can't swim! I'm from District 11, where the closet thing we have to swimming is a bathtub!"

Percy smirks at me. "Then learn."

* * *

I stare hesitantly at the lake. The cool, calm, waters only make my fears worse. I'm afraid that the Gamemakers will pull some evil trap up on me while I'm in the water, where I'll be vulnerable. I'm not sure whether my backpack is water-proof or not, but there's nothing in there that will be damaged if it is. I suck in what's supposed to be a brave breath, and launch myself into the water.

I go under for about a second before I come back up, gasping for air. My feet are kicking madly in random directions, and my arms are flailing wildly. Then, I realize that I can stand up. The water at the shore barely reaches my ankles. I wade further into the lake, and stop right when it reaches my knees. I can see the other side of the lake now, and it's a long way away. I'm not sure if I should go any further, because there could be horrible aquatic mutations down in the watery depths. I try to ignore my fears as I swim further out in the lake, ignoring the fact that I can hardly breth and that I learned how to keep afloat hardly a day ago.

I'm swimming for what seems like hours, staying afloat miraculously. When I reach the shore, my limbs are tired and aching, and my brain is a pile of useless mush. I'm about to go straight for the glittering Cornucopia when something makes me pause. I turn to my right and see a small berry-bush laden with fruit.

I give an excited yelp and run for the small fruit, quickly stripping the bush clean. But before I pop the berries in my mouth, I examine them closely, making sure that I know that they're not poisonous. They resemble gooseberries, with their green skin and small size and shape. I break open one and smell it, delighted to find that it's exactly like the ones back home.

I walk over to the Cornucopia happily, munching on the tart fruit. I sit down, prepared to relax, when a knife appaers next to my throat. A harsh voice that can only be Sugilite's snarls:

"Hello, sweetheart."

* * *

**Meh. It's short, but it'll have to do.**


	7. Chapter 7

THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS: moderate violence, minor cussing

**Note: nah. I got nothing.

* * *

**

The knife presses against my throat, and I make a strangled sound, adrenaline coursing through my veins. Sugilite's hot breath is on the back of my neck, and my hands are clawing desperately at his arms.

"Thought you could sneak up on me, did you, scum?" The Career snarls, clearly enjoying this game.

I choke on my words as I try to speak. " Just _kill_ me already." I spit.

The boy laughs. "No, I don't think so. See, I want to know, did you honestly think that I wouldn't see you? You were out in the middle of the lake, and _everyone_ saw you, runt. No, I'm not going to kill you right away. I'm going to make you beg for death."

I tingle runs down my spine and I briefly wonder if Percy tricked me. I thought he seemed sincere in his intentions, but I guess I was wrong. Never trust a Career, even a seemingly innocent one. I trusted Percy, and I now I'm about to die. _Stupid! _My mind screams.

Sugilite removes the knife from my throat and throws me to the ground, pinning my arms and legs down with his own. His left hand grapes the knife, and he hesitates, a cruel smile on his face. The wait is agonizing, and there's nothing I can do, though I can be that I'm on camera right now. The knife pierces the skin right above my left eye and drags a line above my eyebrows, and a bloodcurdling scream rings in my ears. I realize that it's my scream when Sugilite laughs. It's a high pitched, insane laugh that scares me even more than the knife. He's raised the knife again, probably to do more damage, when the tip of a blade appears right in the middle of his ribcage. A cannon goes off. Blood oozes out of the wound, the blade disappears, and Sugilite's look of astonishment never leaves his face, and he collapse on top of me, the red liquid still pouring out of his wound.

I push the Career tribute's body away, and struggle to my feet. A hovercraft picks up the body and flies away. The adrenaline in my own body is dying down, and I sway a bit when I stand. I see Percy staring wordlessly at me, and the girl tribute from ten is next to him. Percy's holding my knife, and it's covered in Sugilite's blood. The girl from ten pushes a few strands of short brown hair back from her face, and smiles tentatively at me. I decide to trust her and attempt smiling back before turning to Seaweedbrain. I'm about to say something-something mean-when he hands me a hand-towel. I wonder where he got it when I decide that I don't really care and put it to my forehead, which is still bleeding.

"Thanks for rescuing me." I say sarcastically, glaring at Percy.

He glares back. "At least I came."

"You took forever."

"The other Careers decided to attack me!"

"So you're a Career?"

"What? NO!"

"Well, you sure act like one!"

"I do not!"

"Do too!"

We're nose to nose now, and both of our faces are red. The girl from ten steps in between us, pushing us apart. We glare at each other, and I think my eyes are red-but not from crying or anything.

"Guys?" The girl-I really should learn her name-calmly asks. "Can we all just calm down?"

"No." Percy and I both say, which makes us glare at each other again.

"Please?" Ten-thats what I'm calling the girl until I find out her name-asks, her bottom lip forming a pout. "Deep breaths, okay?"

I sigh, and hold out my right hand to Percy. He stares at it for a moment, then something flashes in his eyes. He spits in his right hand and grasps mine. I cringe.

* * *

We're making a pretty good team, Percy, Ten, and I. We're back inside that stupid hedge maze again when the sun sets. We all look up as the anthem plays and the Capitol's symbol flashes. We all know whose face is going to appear, and we all know what the audience will see. His face looks no different in the sky than it did when he was here in the arena. We continue moving.

* * *

It's my turn to be lookout, and I glance briefly at Percy and Ten's sleeping forms every now and then. After that, I stare blankly at the ground, wondering if Michael's doing okay. Is he on the brink of death, barely hanging on? Is he kissing another tribute, preparing to shove a knife in their back? Is he in the maze right now, only a turn away? The universe seems to want to answer my question, and Michael stumbles into the small camp my companions and I have made in a dead end.

I scream, not knowing who it is, waking up the other two. Ten's eyes are wide open, and she's got my darts in one hand and a blowgun in the other before she's even out of her sleeping bag. Percy's clutching the dumb slingshot, and as for myself, I have my knife.

Michael raises an eyebrow at me as he sees the position we've taken. Ten trips over her sleeping bag as she tries to see who he is. Michael laughs, and laughs, and laughs. Oh, how I _loathe _him. Ten shoots me a confused glance, but Percy smirks when he sees Michael laughing. He shoots a small rock a Michael's temple, which makes him yelp. This time, I laugh.

"Okay," Ten says, getting up unsteadily. "So, who are you? These two seem to know you, but. . ."

Michael, rubbing the small cut that Seaweedbrain's rock made, smiles at Ten. It's weird to see Ten, Michael, and Percy all in the same place, because they could go and kill each other right now and there wouldn't be anything that I could do about it. I know we're on TV. But Michael doesn't fight Ten. He just sits down, and explains that he's my district counterpart. I think Percy snorts.

Before anyone can say anything else, I shrug and say. "Welcome to the group."

Michael looks grateful, and Percy goes back to sleep with a sigh, but we all know that this alliance won't last forever. And, unfortunately for the other two, Michael would be the last person I want to kill.

* * *

**Meh, a bad ending, but whatever. **


	8. Chapter 8

**THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS: violence, death**

**Note: eh. . .I still have nothing. No. . .wait! I DO have "something"! Ahem . . .I would like to thank Lele-the-Greek-Geek for reviewing my story, with good reviews and reviews with almost every other chapter. :)**

**

* * *

**

I'm running, my feet pounding hard against the soft grass of the arena. The walls of the hedge maze fly past me as I run, and everything is eerily quite as I try to escape the flames eating up the maze. Swirls of red, gold, and orange are all around me, and the flames lick the soles of my feet. But they make no sound, as silent as death itself.

I turn a corner, and find myself in a dead end. I whirl around, trying to escape before the flames reach me, but it's too late. The tendrils of burning colors reach out to me, yearning to burn my skin. They touch me, their heat so, so very painful, and I scream. My skin burns, and I see nothing but yellow, that awful, hideous color. It eats me up, and I see my hair go up in flames. My blonde hair is eaten up by the golden fames, which eagerly bring death. A cannon boom echoes through the night air, and I know it's over when I collapse.

* * *

I gasp, sitting up, wildly looking around for fire. All I see are Michael's sleeping form, Ten's silhouette while she cooks another gopher, and Seaweedbrain's out on watch. The sun is about halfway through the sky, a bit after noon, perhaps. I relax a bit. It was a dream. I inspect my body carefully for burn marks though, unsure if the dream-which seemed all too real-was really nothing. Nothing to be afraid of. Not the backpack where my head was resting, not the spider in the corner-

Spider. It's a spider. I can see it crawling toward me, faster than a normal one would.

I instantly know that it's mutation, designed almost especially for me. I scream and scramble out of my sleeping bag. That's the second time I've done this since I entered this arena.

My allies wake up, and Seaweedbrain whirls around. Before they can ask, I'm up, gathering all of the stuff before anyone can say anything. I watch the spider warily, and every second it gets closer, swelling in its size. Percy understands what's happening as soon as the muttation's the size of my fist, and he's stuffing our crap into the backpack along with me. Ten's just barely out of her sleeping bag when we're moving, me dragging Michael by his arm, my backpack barely on my shoulder, and Percy trailing behind us, clutching my knife an staring at the spider, which is the size of a large dog now.

I scream and let go of Michael, sprinting further into the maze, my terror giving me an adrenaline boost, unfortunately leaving the others far behind me. I blindly turn corners, my feet pounding the grass. I think I've lost my allies, the only friends I'd had in the world who'd back me up in a situation like this, when I here a sickening snapping sound from behind me, and then Ten's shrill scream echoes through the night air, just as Michael did not so long ago.

"Ten!" I scream, skidding on my feet as I try to turn around. "Ten!"

I trip and fall in the effort to reach the small girl. I can see her, just a few feet away. The mutation is bigger than the car that brought me to the Training Centre, and Ten's minuscule torso is wedged in-between its pincers. Michael's not too far away from the beast, but he's too far away to help, and Percy's farther behind him.

Ten's torso is soaked in her blood, and she's wriggling madly in the muttation's grip. Her eyes meet mine, and I see something like forgiveness in their brown depths. Her wild red hair is in her face, and that's the last image I'm gonna have of her if-

* * *

_CRUNCH_

_

* * *

_

We all watch as Ten is smashed right before our eyes, her blood spills onto the ground, as scarlet as her hair, and there's nothing, nothing, _nothing_ that I can do about it. My vision is blurred with crimson red.

A cannon fires, and I scream, my shrill voice saying something unintelligible-probably her nickname. Dead, dead, dead.

And then the beast that killed her is on fire. The flames, so similar to the ones of my dream, are burning bright, Ten's corpse safely out of the way. Michael's holding my flint-rock, and his face has a hard look to it, the scabs from his cuts making it look harsher. I try to get up, but I slip. Percy notices and walks over to me, solemnly helping me up. Michael backs away from her body, after murmuring words as unintelligible as my scream, and we watch as the hovercraft comes, silently removing her from the arena, our company, and our lives.

"And then there were eleven." I croak. I'm not going to cry, not now, when I know that the cameras are watching us.

Another cannon shot booms through the air, and I start, not expecting another death so soon.

"And now there are ten." Percy echoes me. He actually sounds sad.

"Who do you think it was?" I ask nobody in particular. Michael answers me.

"We'll know in a few hours," He says, gesturing towards the sky.

Percy and I look up, and I see the sun slowly making its way towards the horizon, when Ten's face will show in the sky and the world will see her gruesome death.

"I'm ashamed to say that I never knew her name." I sigh, my eyes moistening a bit.

"Trista." Percy says abruptly. "Her name was Trista."

I almost break down and cry at the mention of her name. But I don't. I can't afford to show weakness, not now that I'm almost in the final eight. "Let's move," I command. "Before some other mutation finds us."

Michael snorts. "I don't think that'll be a problem. The crowd will have had enough blood for at least the rest of the day."

Percy cracks a half-hearted smile at this, and I make some sort of weird squeaking sound. And then, a sniffle. But I don't let them dwell on this too long, because I have to keep moving. I have to get away from here. I start doing some weird kind of combination between a walk and a run, but I don't care, as long as I'm moving.

Ten-Trista's dead, dead and gone, and the people in the Capitol don't even care. They're probably going insane with bloodlust, and they don't know that the thirteen year old girl that they just saw DIE had a life, and a dream, and-

"Annabeth?"

I turn around, and see Percy and Michael watching me warily. Michael walks up to me, silently pointing towards the sky. I don't look up, but the other two do, watching as the seal flashes and the anthem plays. They might see her face, but the rest of the nation sees her being crushed to death, heartless and uncaring. Then, I remember the other tribute that died today, and I look up, wanting to know who it is, hoping desperately that it's a Career. I see Ten's face fade away, and the girl from Twelve's face appear.

So it wasn't a Career. Just another person who will never make it home alive.

* * *

Days go by. I see more murders, and lose any hope that I'll ever see home again. Michael, Percy and I stay inside the maze, barely surviving. One day we find a small colony of gophers, so we decide to eat them, just as Ten did all those days ago. Eventually, we make it into the final eight. Together, we figure out who's still alive. Me, Michael, Percy, the boy from Six, both from Two, Percy's district counterpart-Ariel, and the girl from One. That means there's still a healthy pack of Careers out to get us.

I decide that keeping the alliance won't do us any good if we end up being in the final three together, and my allies and I agree to split. So we all walk our separate ways, and I don't turn back.

I might still have to kill them, but it doesn't matter anymore. Even in the beginning, we all knew that only one of us would make it out alive.

Let the Games begin.

* * *

**Yeah, that took awhile. And it ended on a sour note. Whatever. It's out now! (Review please!)**


	9. Chapter 9

**THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS: violence, death, minor cussing**

**Note: And now, as this story spirals near the end, I wonder whether Annabeth has changed throughout this whole ordeal. Maybe not yet, but she will. . .

* * *

**

Why is it that I've never had one moment of peace in this freaking arena? Never, ever have I ever been able to relax. Not when I'm with allies, or by myself. Not even now, actually. (And here I was thinking that going to the Cornucopia would be safe.)

* * *

I'm running from a Career the size of the Justice Building, and she's out for _revenge_. It's Twinkle, Sugilite's abused girl-friend, and she looks really pissed off. For starters, who in their right mind names a girl the size of the giant spider _Twinkle_? Seriously? But that's the least of my problems now.

The female gorilla grabs my ankle, sending me down with a loud crash. All of the air empties out of my lung. _No, no, no, NO! _I think. I will not die, not now, when I'm so close to surviving this horrible nightmare. The final six; me, Michael, Percy, Ariel, Twinkle, and the boy Career from Two. All I need is to NOT get killed by Twinkle. With that on my mind, I kick the girl's face when she tries to drag me toward her.

"You're gonna pay! I want you dead!" Twinkle roars, her voice hoarse with anger.

"Yeah?" I shout, wondering if I'm mad for egging her on. "Maybe you can tell Sugilite I said hello when I win!"

Yeah. . .not my best move. Just as I manage to wriggle out of her grasp, Twinkle heaves herself up and body-slams me, sending us both crashing back into the grass. I scream, while Twinkle's muttering a string of cuss-words under her breath. Twinkle drags out an axe bigger than my head, her smile the same as her damn boyfriend's when he tried to kill me.

"Any last words for your mommy?" Twinkle's eyes glitter mischievously.

I won't scream, or plead, or cry. I simply spit in her face, calling her a ..rude.. word in the process.

"Alright then, you asked for it." The Hunter growls. She raises the axe, it glitters in the sunlight innocently, and I form one last coherent thought:

_This is it. I'm really going to die. _

I close my eyes, and the axe swings downward.

My body gets thrown sideways, and I can't open my eyes to see what's happening.

* * *

_CRUNCH_. The sound is too similar to the sound Ten's body made when she died, and I don't feel any pain, so I open my eyes . . . and gasp. Michael took the blow. I don't even know how he knew that I was here, or how he even got here, but he's lying on the ground with an axe through half of his torso. Twinkle's staring down at both of us in shock, unsure of what to do. She, as well, as I, can tell that Michael is still alive, his chest rising and falling as he desperately takes in air. The Career tries to finish him off, or she makes a move toward him, but I'm yanking my knife out of my backpack and plunging it into her chest before she can get any closer to him. They cannon sounds off.

I take my knife back and kick Twinkle's corpse away from me, kneeling next to Michael as he gulps in air.

"You stupid boy." I sob, brushing his overgrown hair out of his face. "Why'd you do it? I didn't need saving. I didn't need to go home."

Michael's eyes meet mine. He smiles wanly, and I choke. He tries to talk, but all I hear are pathetic gurgles, blood clogging his airways.

"Michael, Michael, Michael! Don't leave me!" I scream when he closes his eyes. His eyes jerk back open, by they're losing something deep down in their depths.

"Please don't go! Please, please, please, please…"

"S'okay." He manages. Tears roll down my cheeks. His brown eyes glaze over, and the cannon booms, telling me that it's hopeless.

I whimper, close his eyes, and walk away. I can't bear to take his stuff, even though I knew that he wouldn't begrudge it to me. I wipe away my pathetic tears, the last sign of weakness that I pledge to show in this awful torment. I leave Michael's body, feeling bittersweet the boy I knew no longer suffering in this arena with me.

I guess he's better off where he is now. I tell myself that in hopes fending off the nightmares that are sure to come tonight.

Though, I'm not sure if I'll be able to sleep tonight, now that I've made it into the final four.

With that happy thought, I walk away from the blood-stained grass, the sun just barely rising over the horizon.

* * *

I crawl inside the Cornucopia, pathetically whimpering, my cries echoing back at me inside the small golden horn. Somehow, I miraculously manage to fall asleep. I'm haunted by shadows of people that I've seen die inside the girl from seven, who was my first intentional kill, drives a knife into my right hand. I scream. The boy from three, the one whom I stabbed in the leg, stabs a knife into my left hand. The shades come, one by one, sticking knives into different parts of my wretched, tortured body. Sugilite, Ten, Twinkle, and eventually Michael come up and join the others in stabbing me. I cry and scream and -

"Are you okay?"

I sit up, still screaming my head off. There's a shadowy figure standing in front of me, and I pin them to the ground while my eyes adjust the dim light.

"Stop it! I'm not trying to kill you, _Wise-Girl_!"

Oh, it's Seaweedbrain. I remove my knife, pulling back a bit sheepishly.

"I thought you were trying to kill me." I attempt to explain.

"I can tell," He shakes his head pitifully at me. "I heard that MIchael died. Are you okay?"

"How'd you find out?" I ask, deliberately ignoring his question. "Deductive reasoning?"

He blinks at me. "I don't know what that is, but Ariel and the guy from District Two are still alive, and I just saw you, so I figured that it was Michael and Twinkle who kicked the can."

I nod, wiping excess tears from my eyes. "Yeah, he went pretty bravely too. Took an axe for me, you know?"

Percy shakes his head. "I have no idea how you're still alive. Every time you turn around you're in a near-death situation."

"I guess." I sigh, looking at my. . .friend. "What now? There's only four of us left, so the Gamemakers are bound to drive us all together soon."

"Beats me." Percy shrugs. "But we might as well start heading somewhere else, otherwise we might end up dying inside this golden shell."

I try to smile, but I think it ends up as a grimace. "For the first time since we came here, you've said something intelligent."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

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**NOTE: I might change the title (even though it's a bit late), so if you see something different on your author alert/anything else, don't be alarmed. **

**P.S.: Any new title suggestions?**


	10. Chapter 10

**THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS: violence, death**

**Note: Only one more chapter to go after this! Thank you to all of my wonderful readers! Love you guys! (Err…not literally…)**

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The arena rumbles, and my companion and I stumble around, clinging desperately to the hedges as the maze starts to shudder violently. Even though we haven't talked for hours, we both know that this is it. The final brawl. The Capitol idiots must be on the edge of their seats with anticipation by now, and I'm sure my family is either worrying about me or already planning my funeral. I glance at Percy as the hedges start to crumble, and dust rises all around us. Will I continue with the ally act? Should I kill him now and make it easier on myself? His eyes search mine, seeming to ask the same questions.

With a final groan, the walls of the hedge maze pretty much implode, and they disappear, revealing what the arena's metamorphous has produced. I see it, and I want to scream, wishing that Twinkle really had killed me instead of Michael.

It's a flat wasteland, only about twenty meters across in any direction from where I'm standing. In the middle of a circle, that's filled with nothing but dry yellow grass. The old arena is gone, shed like a second skin, and I can see Percy standing a few feet away from me, and two other figures not to far off. It's the perfect view for the people watching, because there won't be any obstacles to block their view of our deaths.

I stare at the other three, taking in their features as I get a better view of them. Ariel has short light brown hair, a long, Medieval-looking sword, and blue eyes. The boy from District Two has three knives lined up on his belt, merciless brown eyes, and the typical Career stature. Then there's Percy, my last ally, and I'm _so_ afraid that he'll be the one to kill me.

We stare at each other for another tense moment, and then out of the blue, Claudius Templesmith's voice comes on.

"Welcome, tributes, to the final part of the Fifty-Fourth Annual Hunger Games!" He booms, and I immediately know what's coming. A sickening feeling settles in the pit of my stomach. "You four have one challenge left before you become victor! Just. . . .(insert drumroll). . . .don't die!"

_What? _My mind screams. _That's it? Don't DIE? What does that _(bleep) _think we've been doing? _

A split second after the announcer's infamous voice finishes, the District Two Career lunges at Ariel, and Percy and I watch in shock as she fights desperately for her life, struggling as the boy starts yanking his knives out. I can't watch any more. I use their fight to my advantage, pulling my own short knife out and nodding at Percy before slowly approaching the struggle. A cannon booms just as the girl stops moving. She's dead, and now I'm in the final three.

The Career whirls towards me, his eyes alight with ferocious glee. I'm horrified to find out that, even though they're the same color as Michael's, his eyes hold completely different emotions in their depths. The Hunter lunges at me, and I'm parrying his every blow with my little knife, one blade against three. I almost catch his side when I feel his second blade cut into my torso. It's big gash, and blood starts seeping out, soaking my thin layer of clothing. I bit my lip and feebly try to stab his ribcage, but he sees it coming and blocks the blow, sending my knife skittering into the grassy plain. _It might be over for me. _I think suddenly as I collapse, my knees bending slightly and my mind throwing pointless memories at me as the Career smiles, flashing yellow teeth.

"Annabeth! Duck!" Percy's voice screams from behind me.

I instinctively flatten myself onto the grass and Percy picks up my knife, lunging at the Career. I close my eyes and feel my muscles slacken in the embrace of the dead grass. Minutes slip by, and my thoughts grow foggier and foggier. I think I here someone scream, and someone else curse. . . .

A cannon booms, but it's not for me. I'm still alive, but not for long. There's footsteps near my left ear. I force my eyes open, wanting to know if the Career's come to finish me off. It's not him. It's Seaweedbrain, who's bleeding from multiple wounds, his blood coming out heavier than mine. He smiles weakly at me before falling over, coughing out more blood. He drops my knife.

I don't know what to do, and the whole world seems to be spinning around me. Who will win these awful Games?

I think I'm going to die, because Percy's cannon hasn't gone off yet and I'm finding it harder and harder to breath. I can feel my heart slowing, its rhythmic beat growing fainter and fainter in my ears. My body takes in a few shallow breaths, the world goes black, and then. . .

A

cannon

shot.

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_*BOOM*_

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**I know you guys are probably feeling lazy, but please review! I want to know if this was any good! :) And yes, I'm sorry this chapter was kind of short. **


	11. Epilogue

**THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS: mentions of death, a bit of angst**

**Note: Yay! The last chapter! There's just a few people that I'd like to thank:**

**Lele-The-Greek-Geek: You left such amazing reviews ad stuck with me through the whole story! That was PRICELESS, thanks so much!**

**: Thank you so much for your wonderful review! And you even put this on story alert! :)**

**GamerGal546: Thanks for your suggestion, and your review!**

**Perseus12: You had wonderful title suggestions, and you genuinely helped me. Thank you!**

**yayabrande: you've read every story I've written on this site, and review them all. I really appreciate that! Keep reading! And you have me on author alert! THANKS!**

**superflykiwifruit: Thanks for your positive review! Yay!**

**.awsome: I really like both of the original stories, and I'm glad that you do too! Thanks for telling me your opinion!**

**YukiInu1: Thank you so much for being my first review-and a positive one too!**

**And. . .this'll probably make you guys puke, but I actually s.m.i.l.e.d. every time I got a review, good or bad (not that any were bad). :)**

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_"Come on, slowpoke! Hurry up!" Ten's voice cries out in the shadowy limbo. I see her small form moving away from me, shades of white and gray twisting and bending all around us. _

_"Wait up!" I yell, laughing, trying to catch up to her._

_I follow the girl - she must be some sort of angel, she looks so peaceful - and we eventually reach more people, who's silhouettes stand out in the weird, opaque light. They turn towards us, and I feel a grin creeping up on my face as I recognize their familiar features._

_It's Michael and Percy. _

_"Hey, guys!" Michael says in obvious delight, a brilliant smile lighting up his face. His brown eyes are shining with happiness._

_I return his grin without hesitating. Percy smiles at me, and for the moment, I'm happy. But then my friends' grin(s) fade. _

_"What's wrong?" I ask, my own beam starting to fade. _

_"We've got to go, Annabeth." Michael says, his face grim. _

_"Wait. . .what? But I just got here!" _

_"We know - " Percy looks sympathetic. _

_" - But we have to go." Ten finishes._

_"But I don't understand! Why do you have to leave?" I scream at them. They don't reply, shaking their heads slowly, the blurry gray lighting dancing across their faces. The grayness (if you can call it that) starts to condense, getting thicker and thicker, leaving me screaming for my friends. _

_The last thing that I here is Ten's voice:_

_"Don't worry, Annabeth. We'll see you again, I promise."

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_

The world goes black.

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I here incomprehensible noises, and heavy, serious voices in the gloom.

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When I wake up, my cheeks are still wet with tears. I'm in a hospital bed, and there's needles and tubes sticking out of every inch of my skin. I'm alive. Beat up, scarred emotionally, terrified of my future, weak, grief ridden, sick, but alive. Which means that I won. And it means that Percy's dead.

My dream. . .I'm not exactly sure if it was real. I saw my friends, in some sort of freakish limbo-like reality. They're dead. They're all dead. Dead, dead, dead, dead, dead, dead, DEAD. I think I'm about to cry - and I could care less who sees me at this point - when the door to my hospital room opens and a doctor walks in.

"Ah, Miss Annabelle," He says, his Capitol accent making me wince in fear. "You are awake. That's good, because I can test your mental capability." The man beams at me, but I don't respond. I'm not sure if I'm capable of doing so without blaming him for everything that happened in the arena.

"Miss?" He asks, trying to get my attention. "I will ask you some questions now, okay?"

I nod slowly, feeling like a mental person. But who knows, I might be mental right now and not even know it.

"Annabelle, can you tell me your name? Your full name, given to you at birth?"

I stare at him, debating whether I should answer his stupid question. I decide that it won't kill me to, so I try to get my mouth to work properly so that I can speak.

"Annabeth." I finally croak. "Annabeth Chase."

The doctor - that insufferable man - asks me another question. "How old are you?"

"Sixteen."

"What color are you eyes?"

"Grey."

"Who's your best friend?"

"I. . .I don't have any."

The questions went on and on like, that, and the doctor finally told me that I passed and that I was mentally sane. I thank him, and he leaves. I try not to think about my time in the arena, knowing that I'll have to watch the recap in front of the whole nation.

When I watch the recap, my face is blank and emotionless. But inside of me, there's utter turmoil. When I stab the boy from Three - and later, when the Capitol shows his death - I feel immensely guilty, especially when I stab the girl from Seven. When Ten dies, I cringe, my first outward sign of emotion since the arena. My face is blank when Michael and Twinkle die, and then I see the final struggle between The District Two Career, Percy, Ariel, and me.

That's when I finally see how Seaweedbrain dies. It looks like he's going to live, and win this game, when he grasps the knife, looks at me warily, as if hoping that I'd wake up, and stabs himself. I don't cry, and I can't bring myself to feel anything more that shock internally. Because I can't feel this unbearable grief anymore. So, as the anthem plays and they announce me as victor, I decide to close off my emotions when I get home, because Bobby and Matthew CAN'T see their older sister break down.

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I slowly mesh back into the world. I take baby steps, unwilling to get too attached to anything - because the Capitol could take it away, and where would I be then?

When they interview me a few months later, I somehow find some talent that I actually enjoy. Architecture.

It's solid, and fixed, something that I can actually depend on. I love it. I spend hours in my room at Victor's Village, carefully designing majestic buildings far grander than anything in District Eleven.

But at night, the nightmares haunt me. I'm always in the arena, never able to leave the eternal torture. I see my friends die all over again, every single night, and I see myself murder violently, seemingly heartless. I wake up screaming or crying during the night, cold sweat drenching my shivering body.

And when the Games come around again, as they do every year, I bond with a new set of tributes, and watch every single one of them die before my eyes. I loose count of the murders. There are too many, all somehow blending together in my dreams, where I'm vulnerable.

But I don't give up. I won't let the Capitol have the satisfaction of breaking me, like they did to so many others.

If too many days go by, before long, I might loose the one thing that the Capitol hasn't taken away from me. A spark. And if they take it away, then the Capitol will win.

And I'm not planning on loosing this Game.

All you need

is

a

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**Spark***

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**Was that a bit confusing? Yes? I know it was a bit angst-y, but she just lost. . . .a LOT of people. I can actually relate to that, so trust me when I say that angst is a normal feeling.**

**Did THAT make any sense?**

**I didn't think so.**

**But that doesn't matter, because this story's over, so BYE and THANK YOU!**


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